


never "goodbye"

by jetplane



Series: Whumptober 2020 [10]
Category: Criminal Minds (US TV)
Genre: F/F, Hospitals, Major Character Injury, Surgery, Whumptober 2020
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-11
Updated: 2020-10-11
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:27:11
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,528
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26945926
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jetplane/pseuds/jetplane
Summary: When JJ is shot by Grace Lynch in 15x01, Emily is the one by her side.prompt: blood loss (day 10)
Relationships: Jennifer "JJ" Jareau/Emily Prentiss
Series: Whumptober 2020 [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1946050
Comments: 2
Kudos: 47
Collections: Whumptober 2020





	never "goodbye"

**Author's Note:**

> jetplane writing a story that's coherent? It's more likely than you think. 
> 
> Anyways, I hope you enjoy this story and thank you for reading! I've never written a Jemily fic before and I wasn't quite sure how to pull it off, so this story ended up kind of straddling the lines between platonic and romantic. Please tell me what you think about it!
> 
>  _my love was as cruel as the cities I lived in  
>  everyone looked worse in the light  
> there are so many lines that I've crossed, unforgiven  
> I'll tell you the truth, but never "goodbye"_  
> \- "Daylight" by Taylor Swift

“Everett Lynch, FBI! Stop!” The unsub froze and turned around inches from the car door. “Drop your weapon and place your hands on your head,” JJ demanded. When Lynch didn’t move, she raised her gun slightly. “Now!”

“Okay, okay.” Lynch showed JJ his hands, one of which was still clutching the weapon. “Take it easy. There’s no reason to gun down a daddy in front of his little girl.” Slowly, he crouched down. “Right?” A metallic _click_ echoed through the parking garage as he set down the gun and started to stand up.

“Kick it over,” JJ ordered. Lynch took a tentative step forward and kicked the gun. It slid across the floor and stopped a few feet away from her. She looked at it, then at the unsub’s daughter. “Alright, Grace, you too. Come on, drop your backpack and let me see your hands.” Grace looked uneasily between the agent and her father, hands still clutching the bag. “Come on, now!” The girl did as she was told, bending down to place her backpack on the floor and then standing up with her hands raised.

“Alright, don’t move.” JJ crept forward, eyes shifting between Everett and Grace. As she took her gaze off of the pair to retrieve the weapon from the floor, JJ didn’t notice the teenager reaching into her pocket. She didn’t see the gun slide out of the jacket, clasped between two steady hands as Grace pulled the trigger. But she did hear the unmistakable metallic explosion of a firearm being fired once, twice, three times, and she did feel the sharp pain of the bullet as it tore into her body.

The force of the shot knocked the agent off her feet, sending her toppling over the floor. She landed hard on her hip and let out a groan as the impact stabbed a fresh wave of pain into her side. JJ gasped as her body came to a stop on the cold ground, and she could feel the blood start to seep out of her body. She shuddered, face contorting as she fought to withstand the pain burning through her abdomen. As JJ tried to take a deep breath, she was dimly aware of Everett Lynch laughing in the background. She clenched her fists and cursed herself as she heard his van pull away. _Maybe I can just close my eyes..._

Static from JJ’s radio drew her back to the present. “JJ, what’s your location?” It was Emily. “JJ, do you copy?” She tried to reach for her radio, but her arm wouldn’t cooperate. Blood was building up in her lungs and throat, sending crimson rivulets down her cheeks with every gasp for air. Even if JJ had been able to hit the button, there was no way she would have been able to speak. “JJ!”

Footsteps pounded through the parking garage as JJ’s vision started to blur. _Emily’s coming. Thank God._ When she was able to see again, the brunette’s worried face was looming over her. “It’s okay,” she said reassuringly. “It’s okay. I’ve got you.”

JJ felt Emily’s hand against her side. She found the wound and pressed her fingers against it to slow the bleeding. “You’re going to be okay. Just stay with me, okay?” The blonde managed to acknowledge her with a shaky nod. “Just stay with me and keep breathing.” With her free hand, Prentiss grabbed her radio and lifted it to her lips. “JJ’s down; she’s been hit. We need an ambulance, now.” She tried to take another breath and a wave of panic shot through her as she felt more blood flood her airway. Her lungs forced a cough out, successfully expelling some of the liquid but sending fresh pain through her chest. JJ squeezed her eyes shut.

“Hey,” Prentiss tapped JJ’s face with her free hand. “I need you to stay with me, JJ.” The blonde’s eyes fluttered open again, and she could see Emily’s weak smile in response. “Just keep on breathing.” She reached across JJ’s body and took her hand.

“Emily-” JJ tried. _Thank you for staying with me_ , she wanted to say, but the words wouldn’t come out.

Prentiss shook her head. “Don’t try to talk. The ambulance will be here any minute now.” As if on cue, her ears picked up on the faint wail of a siren. “You hear that? Everything’s going to be okay.”

JJ tried to nod, but her head felt like it was made out of lead. _I don’t think I can hold on much longer, Emily_. Each breath was growing shallower than the last, and Prentiss’s face had started to blur again. She knew it was only a matter of time before her body stopped delivering oxygen altogether. Her eyelids fluttered.

“JJ, don’t close your eyes,” Emily warned. She gripped her friend’s hand tighter as if willing her to breathe by sheer force of effort. “You have to stay with me, okay? Just a few more seconds and the ambulance will be here.”

 _I’m sorry. I’m so tired._ Her eyes rolled back into her head, and everything went black.

-

Inside the ambulance, JJ faded in and out of consciousness. The voices of the paramedics sounded muffled, almost like they were underwater, as they pressed an oxygen mask to her face and pricked an IV into her veins.

“Come on, JJ, stay with us,” Emily urged. One of the medics had forced her to let go of JJ’s hand as she was taken into the ambulance, but she had refused to leave her alone for a second. “Stay with us, please.”

The ambulance jolted to a stop in front of the hospital, and the paramedics threw the doors open. Prentiss followed as they lifted the stretcher, never taking her eyes off of her friend as doctors met them at the door and wheeled her into the emergency room. All she could do was stare at JJ’s bloodied face as the doctors started to attach her to machines.

A sudden beeping sent Prentiss’s heart into her throat. “She’s crashing,” someone called out, preparing a defibrillator as numbers on the monitor started to fall. “Clear!” Her body jolted with the sudden shock of electricity, and a steady beat returned. “I got a heartbeat!” Emily let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding.

One of the doctors turned to Prentiss and looked her over. “Are you her spouse?” she asked hurriedly.

The question came out of left field and punched her straight in the gut. _Are you her spouse?_ “I’m - uh - no,” Emily stammered. She hadn’t even thought to call Will. “He’s not here.”

“He’d better get here quick,” the doctor said.

-

Hours later, Prentiss found herself by JJ’s bedside. Will had arrived just in time to see his wife into surgery, but he’d had to leave to pick up Henry and Michael from school. It was late by then, and they were alone in the hospital room.

Emily jumped up when she noticed a small twitch of JJ’s hand. “JJ?” she asked hopefully. “Can you hear me?” It twitched again, and Prentiss found herself slipping her fingers into JJ’s hand. “Squeeze my hand if you can hear me,” she ordered. Nothing for a moment. And then she felt JJ squeeze, wrapping her fingers around Emily’s. She breathed a sigh of relief.

It took a few moments for JJ to open her eyes. When she did, her eyes scanned the room before coming to rest on Prentiss’s face. “Hey,” she said with a soft smile.

“Hey,” Prentiss echoed. “Do you remember what happened?”

She hesitated, then nodded. “Lynch’s daughter shot me,” she recalled. Her eyes widened slightly. “Are they still loose?”

Emily pressed her lips together and nodded. “We’ll get them soon, don’t worry. All you need to do is rest.”

“Mmm,” JJ hummed. Her expression was conflicted.

“The doctor said you should make a full recovery. But I can get someone if you want to talk to them, or you need pain meds or - or anything else,” Prentiss offered. “And Will and the kids should be here any minute now. He showed up right before you went into surgery.”

JJ nodded. “Thanks.” She leaned her head back to rest.

“The medication they have you on is pretty strong.” Emily could see that her friend’s energy was already draining. “Do you want to go back to sleep?”

She shrugged, then winced slightly. Prentiss jumped up, ready to help, but JJ shook her head and waved her off. “I want to see the kids first,” she replied. “And…” Her eyes locked onto Emily’s, and she squeezed her hand again. “I wanted to say thank you. I didn’t get to earlier.”

Prentiss frowned. “Thank me for what?”

“For staying with me.” JJ smiled. “It made me feel safe.”

“Oh. Yeah, of course,” Emily replied. “I’m really glad that you’re okay.” _I don’t know what I would have done if I’d lost you._

She nodded. “Me too.” JJ ran her thumb lightly over the back of her friend’s hand and licked her lips. “Will you stay here with me now?”

Emily gave her an earnest look. “Of course,” she promised.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading this story! Please let me know what you thought about it in the comments, and I'll see you next time!


End file.
